Allow Senators To Pick Their Leaders, Group Tells APC

The Citizens Advocacy Group has urged the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to allow the members of the National Assembly to choose their leaders in the 10th Assembly.

The group in a statement yesterday by its convener, Chris George and secretary, Haruna Kabir failed the announcement of Senator Godswill Akpabio as the sole candidate for the position of the Senate President for the 10th National Assembly by the All Progressives Congress saying the act is autocratic imposition which has no place in a democracy.

They said the decision by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to choose the Senate President for the 109-member Senate, arguing that the announcement is an affront on the principle of separation of power.

The statement reads, “The decision by the National Working Committee of the APC to impose a candidate on the Senate as the President of the next Upper Legislative Arm of the National Assembly has been generating an uproar in the polity.

The APC NWC has released the zoning of offices for the 10th National Assembly. A document issued after the NWC meeting in Abuja, showed that the Senate President would come from the South-South and specifically, Senator Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom).

Others are “Deputy Senate President: North West- Senator Barau Jubrin (Kano);  Speaker, House of Representatives: North West- Abass Tajudeen (Kaduna); and Deputy Speaker: South East- Ben Kalu (Abia).

“This decision has been generating controversy and this is not unexpected and we feel we must add our voice to what we see as an anti-democratic posture which bodes no good for our nascent democracy.

“What the party has done is an autocratic imposition which has no place in a democracy as it poses serious danger to independent legislature and an attack on the principle of separation of power,” he said.